The present disclosure relates to a detachable unit that is detachably attached to an image forming apparatus adopting electrophotography, such as a copier, printer, facsimile machine, or multifunction peripheral incorporating those. More particularly, the present disclosure relates to the structure of a grip portion in a removably attached unit.
In conventional image forming apparatuses, because of the lifetime of a photosensitive drum (image carrier), when the number of sheets printed reaches a predetermined number (for example, several tens of thousands of sheets), the photosensitive drum (image carrier) needs to be replaced. A developing device arranged adjacent to the photosensitive drum may also need maintenance or replacement.
To cope with that, a photosensitive drum and a developing device are built into a unit, and various mechanisms have been devised that allow such a unit to be attached and removed easily. For example, an image forming apparatus is known in which a photosensitive unit including a photosensitive member is configured to be removably attached in an image forming position in a body casing, and a developing unit is configured to be removably attached to the photosensitive unit, wherein the photosensitive unit is provided with a photosensitive unit-side guide portion, a body guide portion for the developing unit is formed on the body casing, and the body guide portion for the developing unit is formed to be continuous with the photosensitive unit-side guide portion.